l10n and i18n (RE: Potato release: What is "official"?)
Hi,
From: "A. Scott White" <scottw@coderite.com>
Subject: RE: Potato release: What is "official"?
Date: Tue, 20 Jun 2000 18:09:38 -0500
> > I would love to see our installer support l10n at image
> > creation
>
> What is l10n? Localization? Is it the same thing as I18n?
I am a writer of a document "Introduction to i18n" at Debian
Documentation Project.
L10n is localization. Different from i18n, l10n implements
language- (or character code-) specific matters directly.
For example, using locale system and gettext is i18n, while
assuming that 8-bit characters are iso8859-1 is l10n.
You may say i18n is always superior to l10n. However,
i18n need standardized methods. For categories where
standardized methods are not available, l10n method cannot
be avoided.
Some people think that i18n is gettextization and l10n is
writing translations for gettextized softwares. However,
gettextization and translation are only a small part of
i18n and l10n.
Debian JP Project http://www.debian.or.jp/ have also released
Japanese-localized CD images. It could display Japanese
character (though could not input Japanese character) using
"kon2", while official CD image could not display Japanese character.
I don't know very much about Japanese-localized boot-floppies
and CD images since I have never worked on them...
Also, I don't know about LinuxLand and about what l10n
means concretely now.
---
Tomohiro KUBOTA <kubota@debian.or.jp>
http://surfchem0.riken.go.jp/~kubota/
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